My family was robbed and we know who did it. How do I comfort my family and confront the robber?

A Redditor shares the devastating experience of their family home being robbed while they were away. Suspicion falls on a group of young friends who had visited the house shortly before the break-in. Now, they are struggling with how to comfort their family, particularly their 9-year-old sister who feels guilty, and how to confront the suspected thieves if the police do not act. Read the full story below:

‘ My family was robbed and we know who did it. How do I comfort my family and confront the robber?’

I’m completely devastated right now. So I live in city A but have been staying with my boyfriend for the passed couple days to sit my university exams in city B. I didn’t bring much, just some clothes and my computer. At home (in city A) I live at my mother’s house alone with the family dogs and my cats.

My mother lives at my father’s house with him and the kids. While I’m away the house is empty. My mother goes over to my house twice a day to feed the animals and let them in/out. I got a call this morning from mum saying that the house has been robbed. Everything that isn’t a large item was cleared out: TVs, laptops, even my clothes, bikes, shoes and make up.

My immediate concern is the animals, who were accounted for and fine. Mum lets me know she’s going to take note of everything that’s missing and file a report. I thank her, hang up and start crying. The rest of the day I’m just filled with anger and hate and anxiety. My mum later called me to tell me know that my little sister (9) let herself in and took some friends over to see the dogs.

One of the friends was asking extremely suspicious questions: – “so who lives here? Are you sure no one is here?” – “Whose car is that in the driveway?” (its broken, just sits there). – “Whose make up is that?”. – “Do your dogs bite strangers?” It got to the point were my sister was uncomfortable and they left.. That night we were robbed.

These friends would have seen where we kept the spare key. I talked to my sister and I think she is feeling guilty. Yes it was stupid to show where the key was, but she’s only 9 and has been friends with these girls for a while. My little sister showed my mother where this girl lives. The key was MISSING from it’s spot; they still had it.

I am worried that the evidence is not strong enough to warrant a police search of the house. How should I approach them if the police do not? I can’t just let it go. They have ~$10,000 worth of our stuff. This happened in New Zealand so I’m not too sure if your legal advice is relevant here (although it may still help), at the moment I am just seeking advice on how to approach the thieves and how to comfort my little sister and family.

The door is now locked at the bolt on the inside since they have the key. But this does mean we need to get my little sister to jump through the window to unlock the door. And it also means that there’s an open window that a kid can get through…

I’m just feeling so stressed out and anxious, and I want to get back to make sure the thieves don’t return and that my animals are safe. But I have an exam in 2 days, and travelling will take a day each way… Help me 🙁 I’ve posted here to help relieve some anxiety as I haven’t slept all night and the sun is coming up.

Here’s how people reacted to the post:

applesangria −  You don’t confront this person, you contact the police immediately, then change all of the locks. You also let your sister learn from her mistakes- don’t berate her or intentionally make her feel badly, but make clear that giving away personal information is dangerous and leads to situations like this.

sunflower-power −  You should also check local pawn shops in your area for the missing items. If the thieves pawned anything you can get it back for free by showing your copy of the police report and it will become part of the police investigation.

When this happened to a friend of mine, we went around to the local pawn shops and asked if anybody had pawned a guitar of X type, an amp, and some jewelry that looked like this or that. Pawn shops typically keep the pawned items in a back room until the ticket is either paid for in full or the time limit expires; the items then move to the floor for sale.

We found my friend’s stuff at the second shop we tried, and she got all of her stuff back. If anything was pawned in the last few days… You could go with a list and description of the missing items and might even find them all in one place! If you have pictures of the items and/or serial numbers that would also really help.

[Reddit User] −  I know it’s not legal advice, but hopefully this anecdote will make you feel a little better. Many years ago when my dad had his first place, he had friends over to play a game of cards. One of his friends brought a friend and very that my dad never met. My father thought that this guy seemed a little shady.

He was asking a lot of questions about my dad’s stereo and records. This was a Saturday evening. I’m sure you can see where this story is going. The following Monday, my father comes home from work to find his brothers dog panting in the corner with blood everywhere. The blood was all over his fur, and a trail led to a broken window where there was blood and chunks of flesh.

The day before, my uncle left for a two week vacation and left his rottweiler with my dad to take care of. My dad never filed a police report because he feared they would take the dog away. Instead, he cleaned up the mess, went to the store, and bought the dog a nice chunk of steak.

The following weekend, my dad and his buddies were out where they saw this guy with one of his forearms completely bandaged up. My dad, the ever inquisitive ass that he is, asked him what happened. The guy said it was a work accident.

The mutual friend chimed in and said “you told me you were attacked by a dog.” an argument and ass beating quickly erupted. Morale of the story: don’t let strange people in your house. But your sister shouldn’t feel bad about it. Its just a hard lesson learned.

jesteridiot −  Go to the police and tell them everything. Don’t let the robbers know that you know , they could try and hurt your family.

[Reddit User] −  I would call the police and let them handle it.

Chocobuny −  I live in New Zealand too (Christchurch). Call the police, they will sort it out. A robbery of this scale is a serious matter, any they appreciate any tips. Good luck for your exams, I’m doing mine too!

[Reddit User] −  Go to the police!

lanadelrage −  Holy s**t, where do you live, Cannons Creek? This is some hardcore stuff for New Zealand.

CheersBros −  Good for you, I unfortunately wasn’t able to do anything about the thief that stole 2000 Euros from me, even though I knew who it was.

This story raises tough questions about trust, responsibility, and justice. How would you handle this situation if the police didn’t intervene? What advice would you give to the family? Share your thoughts below.

For those who want to read the sequel: https://aita.pics/RJCrK